Renowned installation artist Liu Jianhua has created a thought-provoking new artwork that blends the classic and contemporary: Porcelain letters and fragments of Chinese characters, suspended in midair, invite you to hunt for meaning. Commissioned for our 50th anniversary, Liu’s striking artwork links the building’s past as the city’s Main Library with the museum’s distinctly forward-looking mission.

Elementary School (4-5),Middle School (6-8),High School (9-12),College and Beyond

Resource Type:

Video

Duration:

0:04:19

Description:

This contemporary composition by David Samas and Peter Whitehead, was performed on the replica-bells and overtone flute at the Asian Art Museum as part of the exhibition, Tomb Treasures: New Discoveries from China's Han Dynasty. Special thanks to the Center for New Music in San Francisco.

Benoy K. Behl's documentary, Ramayana: The Greatest Epic, takes one to India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Lao PDR, Cambodia, Myanmar, Nepal and Indonesia to document and tell the story of this great epic through multi-religious, international cultural performances. Generations of children have learned the vast story of the “Ramayana” through the incredibly diverse methods of performance and storytelling. Join the conversation with the director and curator of the exhibition, Forrest McGill.

Join Mera and Donald Rubell, founders of the extraordinary Rubell Family Collection in conversation with Dr. Pedro Moura Carvalho, Deputy Director of Arts & Programs at the Asian Art Museum, as they discuss 28 Chinese, which was the result of more than a decade’s worth of exploration, research and collecting.

Students will: 1.) examine the Hindu tradition of pookolam—a three-dimensional threshold art using flowers; 2.) research the harvest festival of Onam celebrated in the southwestern state of Kerala, India; 3.) create an auspicious flower decoration in celebration of Onam

A True Picture of the Steamship Powhatan; A Ship Generally Called a Steam Frigate..., from the Black Ship Scroll, Edo period (1615-1868); approx. 1854. Japan. Handscroll segment mounted as a hanging scroll; ink and colors on paper. Museum purchase with assistance from the Japan Society of Northern California, 2012.60.2.

Elementary School (4-5),Middle School (6-8),High School (9-12),College and Beyond

Resource Type:

Background Information

Description:

In Chinese brushpainting, the artist can achieve a multitude of effects by varying such factors as the speed and pressure applied to a brush, the size and type of brush, the amount of moisture, the manner in which different shades of ink or colors are loaded onto the brush, the angle at which the brush is held, and the type of paper or silk used for painting.These examples, drawn from the museum’s collection, represent some of the more common techniques.

Described as "an archaeologist of visual apocrypha," US and Hong Kong-based artist Adrian Wong plays with signifiers of culture and identity, lending objects new life through adjusted interpretations. With his unique background—including an MA in developmental psychology and an MFA in sculpture—Wong makes esotericism accessible and tangible.

Warning: Contains explicit language. Join influential playwright Philip Kan Gotanda to get the inside scoop on the ideas and inspirations behind his groundbreaking body of work, including his play, After the War Blues.

America: Depiction of an American Ship and Portraits of the First Ambassador Perry and the Deputy Ambassador Adams, by, Shinsei (Japanese, 1850's), 1854. Ink and colors on paper. Bequest of Marshall Dill, F2001.23.1.

Amir Hamzah, uncle of the Prophet Muhammad, spreader of Islam, and hero of the Serat Menak, by dalang Otong Rasta. Indonesia; Bandung, West Java. Wood, cloth, and mixed media. From the Mimi and John Herbert Collection, F2000.86.62.

With simple beginnings in the pre-Islamic period, Arabic script developed rapidly after the rise of Islam into not only a writing system but also an art form. Includes audio by Assistant Curator of South Asian Art, Qamar Adamjee.

Buddhism was officially transmitted to Japan in 525, when the monarch of the Korean kingdom of Baekje sent a mission to Japan with gifts, including an image of the Buddha, several ritual objects, and sacred texts. Buddhism's journey from India to China, Korea, and Japan had taken about a thousand years.

Elementary School (4-5),Middle School (6-8),High School (9-12),College and Beyond

Resource Type:

Background Information

Description:

Experience for yourself the art of brush-and-ink painting. Begin by learning how to hold the brush. Once you feel comfortable, experiment by applying varying degrees of pressure, speed, and moisture. Finally, create your own brushpainting masterpiece.

Pages

Major support for the Asian Art Museum’s education programs and resources is provided by The Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership, the Koret Foundation, Wells Fargo Foundation, and The Hearst Foundations, Inc.